Tempest and Sunshine

Several days after, Mrs. Carrington received a letter which she supposed

came from Dr. Lacey. In it she was coolly requested not to interfere in

other people's matters, and told that any efforts on her part to engraft

herself into Dr. Lacey's good graces by maligning Julia, would be useless,

and only serve to confirm him in his present low opinion of her, while at

the same time it would increase the high estimation in which he held Miss

Middleton!

After that Mrs. Carrington troubled Dr. Lacey with no more letters, but

busied herself in anticipating the capture of a wealthy gentleman, who

Ashton told her was, in the course of two or three months, coming on from

Charleston, South Carolina.

The scene now changes from Dr. Lacey's to the "Indian Nest," on the lake

shore. It was a charming spot, and looked as if intended only for the

inhabitation of the pure and innocent. Yet even there was crafty ambition

and base deceit. Julia was there, eagerly seeking to wind her coils

securely around her long watched-for prey. To all eyes but her own she

seemed not likely to succeed, for though Dr. Lacey admired her and

possibly treated her with more attention than he did either Mabel or

Florence, yet his heart still turned to Fanny, and for hours he would sit,

talking to Julia of her sister, while she schooled herself to answer all

his questions without one sign of impatience.

Occasionally she would speak to Dr. Lacey of his cousin, young Stanton,

and would tell how much pleasure Fanny seemed to take in his society. But

this produced no effect, for Dr. Lacey had learned from Stanton himself of

his approaching marriage with Miss Ashton. Then Julia pulled another

string and expatiated so largely upon Frank Cameron's sayings and doings

that Dr. Lacey became really uneasy, for recently he had thought seriously

of again writing to Fanny, and now he determined to do so.

Without knowing it, Julia was herself the means of causing this

determination to be carried into effect. One night she and Dr. Lacey had

been strolling for more than an hour through the many delightful walks in

the garden, which lay upon the lake shore. To her great satisfaction, they

were entirely alone, for Mr. Middleton and Florence were engaged in their

favorite game of chess, while Mabel was eagerly listening to Ashton, who

was relating to her some of his India adventures. Mabel had good sense

enough to know that her efforts to win Dr. Lacey would be useless, and

rather reluctantly she had given him up. Now her eyes grew brighter and

her heart beat faster whenever Ashton approached. But, fair Mabel, your

hopes are all in vain.